Al-Jalajal: Microbes can kill a million people every year

Health Minister Fahd Al-Jalajel said that the Kingdom’s hosting of the Fourth World Ministerial Conference on Antimicrobial Resistance in Jeddah is a clear demonstration of our commitment to confront this global challenge, which continues growth affecting human health and animal and plant resources, slowing down. wheel of economic and social growth, emphasizing that the vision of Saudi Arabia 2030 has allowed the Kingdom to become a global center for addressing and responding to health challenges.

He emphasized that antimicrobial resistance has a major impact on all aspects of life

Al-Jalajel explained that this conference is an important focus in our joint efforts to tackle one of the most important global health threats at this time, stressing that antimicrobial resistance has a major impact on every aspect of our lives, and that losing control means just that. a threat to public health, economic stability and global security that is also changing the course of centuries of health and social progress.

He said that this silent epidemic knows no boundaries and affects all ages and groups, as it causes more than a million deaths every year, which is more than the total number of deaths due to HIV and malaria together, and that with the current acceleration, we will probably see in 2050 the number of deaths caused by microbes.

He emphasized that we must work to develop solutions to this challenge, as the conference, which will host the largest number of countries in the history of previous conferences, represents an opportunity good for strengthening our global response and moving from reporting to implementation.

He continued that all the countries participating in the conference are very aware of the magnitude of this challenge and the urgent need to take good measures to deal with antimicrobial resistance, through prevention and disease control, full implementation of national action plans, and taking the necessary steps to provide equitable access to antibiotics.

Al-Jalajel said that the Jeddah Statement entitled “From Statement to Application” fulfills what is published by a high-level meeting of the United Nations General Assembly, and transfers that content to implementation through procedures and specific initiatives, including the World Science Committee to Support Antibiotic Resistance, and the Biotechnology Bridge, which supports Research, development and innovation, and a knowledge center to raise social awareness .

He emphasized that if we don’t act quickly, we are looking at a world where we will not be able to treat many diseases, and the antibiotics that, thank God, have saved millions of lives, will not be available when we need them. Without effective antibiotics, we risk losing the benefits of modern medicine, and we are indebted today to preserve this precious gift.